


Beyond The Woods

by That_Nerd_Charlie



Category: Camp Camp
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, OCs - Freeform, whoops
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-07-28 08:42:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16238096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/That_Nerd_Charlie/pseuds/That_Nerd_Charlie





	1. Chapter 1

Tired. She was so,  _ so _ tired.

 

No. 

 

She was beyond tired.

 

Tired was the state of needing more rest, the state of skipping a few nights of sleep due to the fact of it never came. Tired was the anticipation of the sandman bringing dreams, yet no arrival. She was beyond tired.

 

Juniper Bonnie Lexus was more than tired. She was exhausted. She felt the lassitude down to her bones as the rush of the events ran past her mind in a haze. 

 

Juniper Bonnie Lexus was no longer a Lexus. The name still held until she changed it or until marriage, but in the eyes of the law, she is no longer her parent’s child. She was no longer apart of their family.

 

And she never was. Juniper Bonnie Lexus was never that girl. She was June B. Some calling her the nickname of June Bee. June was never Juniper. Juniper was a perfect little girl raised under the constant gaze of Rachel and Bill Lexus. A sweet child with a dress and a facade of poise. She’d rather be June, a rough and happy girl exploring the forest and collecting bugs at a run-down summer camp under the comforting eye of her older sister.

 

But the camp had ended. Three happy months had closed, yet her story remained wide open. The last day was the worst. Her adoptive parents drove up to the mountains to find the poor excuse of a camp that Camp Campbell classified as. June hardly knew her real mother, the occasional letters finding a way to her. The anger flew through Rachel and Bill but was quickly stopped as June’s honorary big sister stood up to her defense. 

 

For the past month a battle ragged on, but the swords were never drawn. It was a custody battle, a fight of who was her true family, none of them being blood. Child Protective Services was called. June was brought in to get her opinion. An extra month of living at the campgrounds with the new owner, David, had proved to be tiring. Exhausting. But it was over now. Or so they thought.

 

____________________________________________________________

 

The car was cold. A bone-chilling shiver ran down her spine as she lied, unable to move. June huddled in the back, the numbing voices continued to yell outside. Tiffany had won, proving she had both the space and proper parenting to house June. Her parents, however, refused to give up.

 

“We raised her from diapers! We gave her all she needed! She is our child!” A female voice rang out, cold and sharp as it cut through the air. June knew it as her wicked mother, Rachel. Her dark brown hair was tied up in a neat bun, makeup always on point even when she stood in the middle of nowhere. She wore a jumpsuit as always, and an earpiece to show she was always working.

 

“That means nothing.” The sweet voice counteracted the argument. Tiffany was dressed down. She wore a pink shirt that had a cute saying about kittens, and regular shorts. Her long, blond hair was also tired back, but in a loose ponytail.

 

“You do understand we have way more money. We can give her what she needs and more. We could simply pay you, or maybe the court-” A male voice was cut off. Glasses and a fedora. The published newsletter writer weighed in on an opinion he didn’t have himself.

 

“Enough Bill. Enough Rachel. You do not understand the needs of her. She doesn’t need you, nor does she want you. What she  _ needs  _ is love and someone to listen, someone to be a friend and offer her the things she wants. Do you even know what her favorite dessert is?” Tiffany spoke loudly, a small wave of courage washing over her as she stood up tall.

 

“I don’t see how this is of any importance! It’s obviously ice cream! All children like ice cream.” Rachel huffed, checking the time on her watch. As the seconds ticked past, so did her patients

 

“She hates ice cream. It’s too cold to enjoy. She likes peanut butter and pudding. Why did you even adopt her?” Tiffany was growing angry. Rachel didn’t seem to care, yet she did the first second she met June.

 

“Ms. Tiffany! How dare you question our reasons for taking in and loving our child! I can assure you her favorite food is beside the point!” Rachel spoke loudly before Bill could, but he didn’t seem to mind, glancing at the newspaper in his pocket.

 

“She is not a symbol of status and an income of more money! She is neglected and mistreated! She doesn’t even know her own birthday-” Tiffany spoke, her words stopping abruptly as a loud slap rung through the closed campground.

 

“ _ How dare you insult our family _ .” Rachel spat, wiping off her stinging hand. “We will be getting Juniper now.” 

 

June could have ignored it, she could have pretended this was a dream, the soft voices a bad nightmare. But the harsh knock on the car window snapped her out of any sense of hope she had left. The door of the yellow bug opened quickly, a hand reaching out and grabbing June, red sharp nails digging into her arm as the young girl tried to squirm.

 

“This nonsense has gone long enough Juniper. The game is done, I hope you had fun  _ playing _ . We are going home.” Rachel yanked on her, pulling her slightly, but June held her own. After all, she was too tired to move.

 

“Get away from her!” Tiffany yelled, her cheek pink from the slap. “You do not get to touch her, you do not get to talk to her, and you do not get to say her name.”

 

The shock was enough to loosen the grip. June freed herself and pressed to the other door of the car, locking it swiftly.

 

“You are going far past the line we have set. Give me my daughter.” She hissed, her scowl resembling a snake.

 

“She isn’t your daughter anymore  _ Rachel _ .” Tiffany shut the car door, standing protectively in front of it and June. Rachel closed in for another swing, but Tiffany knew. She caught her arm, holding it up with a death grip on her wrist as she spoke all too calm. “Here’s what will happen. You and your puppet of a husband will drive away, You will leave, never to talk to, or even about June. you will let me take sibling custody of her and all that follows. If you even speak of her, I will call CPS and ruin that fragile little status you think you have. The only reason you have it is because this is a private case. Understood?”

 

Rachel looked at her red wrist and then to Bill. She nodded meekly and Tiffany left her arm drop. She walked to her fancy car and sped off, flipping a perfectly polished nail at them, leaving them in the dust.

 

Tiffany sighed and leaned on the car, the Lexus’ gone and out of sight. She made her way to the driver's side, glancing at June. “Kiddo..?” Her voice was soft and hoarse.

 

June didn’t move, still huddled and shivering. She was in shock, Tiffany understood. The rug was yanked from her feet with no warning, pulled in both directions as they fought. She had done this to June.

 

“We’ll be in town in a few hours… We could grab dinner if you want.” Tiffany started up the car and cranked the heater. It took her a few minutes of driving to realize June wasn’t cold but lacked support. She passed back a soft blanket and pillow to her, watching in the mirror as June snuggled up.

 

“June?”

 

No response. Tiffany sighed. It was her fault, but she couldn’t let her go back there. Going back there meant another school year indoors, private school academy and no friends. It meant being alone. And after a chaotic three months, June couldn’t adjust back into that life.

 

“I’m sorry.”


	2. Chapter 2

To say she had a full night’s sleep was pointless. June tossed and turned all night, the comfort of the car seat far from perfect. She held on to the pillow she was given weakly and muttered, rolling over and adjusting the seatbelt before dozing off again.

 

The darkness. It was nice. The waves of light swooshing by on the passing streetlights lulled her into a false sense of security whenever she found her sleepy and red eyes opening again. Tiffany kept the heater on, the warm air and white noise another adding factor that kept her asleep.

 

But the thing that made her close her eyes, in the long run, was the fact that she didn’t want to wake up. If she did, she’d face her new life.

 

It wasn’t like June  _ didn’t  _ want to live with her sister, she really did, but she just wasn’t ready for a change. It was too overwhelming. When she’d wake up, summer would be officially over. She’d start school, she’d move, and life will begin.

 

But it never truly stopped, did it? The earth kept spinning as June figured what was wrong. Birds continued to fly and flowers bloomed. Everything that wasn’t sucked into the drama of her life remained unchanged. Life didn’t stop, not for her, not for anyone. 

 

And before another thought could find it’s way into her mind and twist into some demented poem of self-loathing, June fell asleep once more.

 

___________________

 

“June? Juney? Bon-Bon? Hey, Bonnie…” Tiffany sighed as she stopped the car, turning around to shake the sleeping girl. She felt bad for waking her, seeing as she finally fell asleep, but it had been a few hours and they had finally gotten in town. “June baby, I’m going to go get gas and go to the bathroom. If you’re awake, here's a 10. Go and get yourself something from the mini-mart. Okay, babe?” She spoke soft, figuring June was already wake but didn’t want to push it. Without another word, she placed a bill on the armrest and opened the door.

 

1…. 2…. 3….

 

June waited a full 60 seconds to sit up. Her head swam with the motion but slowly opened her eyes. The scene was so bright and blinding, June had to close them for a second. Looking around, she noticed a brightly lit gas station with dozens of neon signs. OPEN NOW! And FREE BATHROOMS! And other advertisements.

 

Another glance told her that she was dressed enough to go inside and that Tiffany wasn’t watching. June swiftly grabbed the money from the armrest by her head and wrapped herself in the blanket. She stepped out of the car, noting that the air wasn’t as cold as she expected. June kept her head down low and walked into the mini-mart, trying to avoid attention.

 

The soft chime of the door caused her to glance up, and saw her reflection staring back at her. June’s dark brown hair was messier than usual, dark bags under her blue eyes. The yellow camp shirt made her sigh from longingness, but it was too late for that.

 

An employee was staring at her, but the eye contact was never returned. June used the bathroom first, then moved to the food area. Her first selection was obvious. A cup of black, steaming hot coffee. The bitter smell was almost enough to make her smile. Almost.

 

June watched the machine fill up her cup slowly, almost mesmerizing. She grabbed some mini-donuts and a bag of chips. After grabbing her coffee, she did a price count and grabbed a few random stuff before heading up to the front.

 

“Is… That all..?” The employee watched her put the snacks and the coffee on the counter and ringed it up. “Is the coffee for your mom?”

 

June remained silent, giving the teen a flat look.

 

“...No? Your dad..?” He asked nervously as he tapped something. “Uhh... That’ll be 9.47... Do you want a bag..?”   
  


It was more than obvious June had made him uncomfortable. It brought her a little joy to watch him squirm. That’s what he deserved for assuming her parental situation. She placed the money down and nodded, taking the bag and coffee from him.

 

“Have a nice night..?” He added, watching her slowly take a sip from the hot coffee as she glanced at a clock on the wall. It was past 3 am.

 

June shifted through the bag, bumping into someone. She looked up with a glare, preparing to make someone else feel awkward but found a blonde ponytail turn.

 

“There you are Pip! I knew you where awake! And I see you got yourself some stuff! Did you get any change?” Tiffany crouched down and asked, the lights making her look almost ghostly.

 

June’s face fell as she looked down. She slowly shook her head.

 

“Aw, that’s fine! Don’t worry ‘bout it! Are you excited to see your new home?”

 

June looked away, still not talking.

 

Tiffany hummed softly. “I see… Well, it’s Tuesday. You start school on Monday. Maybe we can go shopping..? I do think Max and David live nearby…” Tiffany tapped her chin, smiling.

 

Her plan worked, and June looked up curious. Tiffany just smiled.

 

“Come on Pipsqueak. Let’s head out. Seeing as you  _ got yourself coffee _ you should be awake huh? You can sit up front and show me what you got.”

 

June felt a small smile reach her lips, but even her numbed senses could pick up on the passive aggressive comment she had made. She nodded and followed her up to the opposite of the car, hopping in and readjusting the blanket.

 

“Y’know… I got a feeling you might like your new school. I heard Neil is going to be there too… Maybe some other kids you know!” Tiffany started the car, turning the heater on.

 

June smiled, pressing her forehead on the cold glass. Her voice was hoarse and soft. “Maybe…”


End file.
